“It doesn’t matter. I won’t be his mistress.” She turned to stare at him.
“And if his wife dies? If Alice Parker invited you to tea, it was because she’s looking you over. Don’t be fooled. King is King, but Alice is much more. King may control Manhattan, but Alice controls King.” Their eyes met.
“Well, neither controls me, Ford. I want none of these machinations. I want to perform. I want to sing. That’s all.”
“Don’t be such a child, Ruby. There is a price. You know that.”
“What price? To sleep with him because he finances the tour?”
“Yes.”
“Then I should back out now. I won’t do it,” she said stubbornly.
“I’m going to London too. King has asked me to go. To keep an eye on things. That’s why I’m here. To tell you we are both going.”
“To keep an eye on things? Do you mean me?” she asked suspiciously.
He said nothing.
“My God! Does King know he’s given the thief keys to the jewelry box?”
“If that’s your absurd way of asking if he knows about us, then no. He does not.”
Ruby had been disturbed by the news that King would be traveling to London. But now to hear that Ford would also be going, she was torn. Days and nights spent on board ship with Ford just beyond reach. It was torture.
“He doesn’t know about us?” Ruby lightly touched his collar. “When I say us, I mean that night in Connecticut.”
Ford tried to stem the flow of irritation and desire that flooded into him. “I said no.”
“That night was so long ago. I can hardly remember it.” She moved her hand along his collar and moved her fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck as his eyes darkened.
“Really?”
“Truly. I remember your room and the cool cloth on my forehead, but I don’t remember much else. Pe
rhaps that happens with men and women,” she said softly, her lips so close to his.
Ford smiled but with no warmth. “Pity you don’t remember.” He backed her up into her vanity table. “I remember everything in perfect detail.”
“Do you?” she whispered.
When her bottom touched the edge of the table, she fell back, and he moved between her legs. He pulled up her skirts to reveal her woolen stockings and lace garters that were feminine and lovely.
“You are a witch, Ruby.”
When his mouth touched hers, he pulled her tightly to him as she wrapped her arms around his neck.
“Am I?”
“Yes.”
She could feel his mouth on her neck, kissing the tops of her breasts. “Ford.”
When had she become a temptress? Ford wondered. He had only ever known the young Ruby from childhood and then the student in school. She had been awkward and unsure of herself. But now it seemed she knew exactly what she wanted, and it was obvious she wanted him. He held her tightly against his chest but stilled his hands and heart.
“I care for you, Ruby. You know that. But we can’t do this,” he said softly.
Ruby felt the sting of rejection but said nothing.